Savvy locavores already know the sad story of declining bee populations; as The Dallas Morning News put it earlier this week, "Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that huge numbers of honey bees across the United States are succumbing to a mysterious phenomenon known as colony collapse disorder."
But Brandon Pollard of the nonprofit Texas Honeybee Guild says awareness doesn't make the problem any less urgent, which is why his organization's partnering with Edible Dallas to screen Vanishing of the Bees at 6:30 p.m. today at the Kessler Theater.
The 2009 documentary, narrated by Ellen Page, features Michael Pollan holding forth on the link between honeybees and the world's food supply, a pet topic of Pollard's.
"We have got to get people to understand the only reason fruits and vegetables aren't disappearing are honeybees," Pollard says. "It's only because bees are amazing insects that you don't have to fight for apple rations."
As of Tuesday, only about 60 tickets to the event had been sold; the Kessler's seating capacity is 575. Pollard rejected suggestions that the weariness voiced by the Morning News was beginning to infect local food fans.
"There are some enlightened folks out there," he said.
To entice prospective attendees who might already be familiar with the honeybee crisis, organizers have recruited Bolsa's Graham Dodds to provide hors d'oeuvres for the event. His menu, announced yesterday, includes blue cheese-stuffed dates; slow roasted grapes with Zip Code honey; brie and comb honey skewers; apple-honey butternut squash soup and local bee pollen.
Tickets to the event are $25.
